Books of Note Archives
Listed alphabetically by title.
Tom
Shachtman
Absolute
Zero and the Conquest of Cold
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1999, ISBN: 0 395 93888 0 $25
Chronicles the rivalries that developed among scientists such as Galileo, Francis Bacon, Isaac Newton, and Albert Einstein during the four-hundred-year history of mans mastery of cold, racing toward temperatures so cold that in comparison ice was warm. With a timeline of inventions and advances further and further into the "country of cold" everything from refrigeration and air-conditioning to the production of microchips that make up the fastest computers to how rockets, satellites and space probes rely on ultra-cold for their power sources and instrumentation Absolute Zero illuminates one of sciences most exciting frontiers.
J.
B. Zirker
An
Acre of Glass: A History and Forecast of the Telescope
Johns Hopkins University Press, November 2005, ISBN: 0-8-18-8234-6,
$30
An Acre of Glass describes how recent innovations in telescope technology have led to the construction of giant, ground-based observatories and to an explosive development of astronomy. Today, telescopes with mirrors 30, 50, and even 100 meters in diameter are being built. Optical interferometers that cover an acre of ground are observing every night. J. B. Zirker shows us how telescopes past, present, and future are built and describes the exciting science they reveal—from planets beyond our solar system to supermassive black holes at the core of distant galaxies.
For every striking image revealed through these enormous telescopes, technicians and scientists must overcome unique and incredible challenges. How many pack animals does it take to get a telescope to the top of a mountain? How do you make the shape of a 6-foot-wide mirror accurate to within a 1,000th the thickness of a human hair? In clear and accessible language, Zirker answers these questions and more, providing fascinating technical detail about how a telescope is made and what the next generation can hope to see.
Neb
Duric
Advanced
Astrophysics
Cambridge
University Press, 2004, ISBN: 0-521-1967-9/0-521-52571-3, $110/$60
The cosmos manifests phenomena in which physics can appear in its most extreme, and therefore more insightful, forms. An understanding of phenomena such as black holes, quasars, and extrasolar planets requires that we understand the physics that underlies all of astrophysics. This book clarifies the fundamental principles of the field as well as the important astronomical phenomena it describes. Develops the basic underlying physics required for a fuller understanding of the science of astrophysics and the important astronomical phenomena it describes.
Gerard
Piel
The
Age of Science: What Scientists Learned in the Twentieth Century
Basic Books, 2001, ISBN: 0-465-05755-1, $40
When historians of the future come to examine western civilization in the twentieth century, one area of intellectual accomplishment will stand out above all others: more than any other era before it, the twentieth century was an age of science. Not only were the practical details of daily life radically transformed by the application of scientific discoveries, but our very sense of who we are, how our minds work, how our world came to be, how it works and our proper role in it, our ultimate origins, and our ultimate fate were all influenced by scientific thinking as never before in human history. In The Age of Science, the former editor and publisher of Scientific American gives us a sweeping overview of the scientific achievements of the twentieth century, with chapters on the fundamental forces of nature, the subatomic world, cosmology, the cell and molecular biology, earth history and the evolution of life, and human evolution. Beautifully written and illustrated, this is an elegant, informative, magisterial summation of one of the twentieth century's greatest cultural achievements.
Mary
Br†®ck
Agnes
Mary Clerke and the Rise of Astrophysics
Cambridge
University Press, 2002, ISBN: 0521808448, $50
Born in Ireland in the mid 19th century, Agnes Mary Clerke achieved fame as author of A History of Astronomy During the Nineteenth Century. During her 25-year career, she became one of the leading commentators on astronomy and astrophysics in the English-speaking world. ClerkeòÀÙs rise in astronomy coincided with the stunning rise of "new astronomy" and the establishment of the great American observatories from which she derived much of her information and inspiration.
In this captivating biography, Br†®ck describes the life and work of a erudite but unassuming woman. The story chronicles the development of astronomy in the last decades of pre-Einstein science, introducing many of the great figures of that age, their achievements and rivalries. Br†®ck explores, for example, ClerkeòÀÙs friendship with William and Margaret Huggins, and her prolific correspondence with eminent astronomers of the age such as David Gill of Cape and George Ellery Hale of CA.
Barry
Parker
Albert
Einstein's Vision: Remarkable Discoveries That Shaped Modern Science
Prometheus Books, 2004, ISBN: 1-59102-186-3, $28
Acclaimed science writer Barry Parker completes his trilogy on Einstein with this new work showing the incredibly wide-ranging influence of Einstein's many discoveries. In the first volume, Einstein's Brainchild, Parker focused on relativity, the most famous and important of the great genius's ideas. In the second volume, Einstein's Passions, his human side and diverse interests beyond science were Parker's main topic.
Now the author turns once again to Einstein as creative scientist, concentrating on his prolific output of far-reaching contributions that complement and broaden his discovery of relativity. Moreover, Parker provides an indelible portrait of the man behind the theories. Parker, in clear and eloquent language, helps us appreciate the breadth and richness of Einstein's vision: from Einstein's theories supporting time travel, to his research on curved space, the cosmological constant, black holes, worm holes, gravity waves, cosmic lenses, to quantum theory, and beyond. Parker also discusses Einstein's reluctant connection with atomic weapons, his pacifist philosophy, his quest for the elusive unified field theory, and the relationship of his work to the recent "hot" area of superstrings.
William
Millar
The
Amateur Astronomer's Introduction to the Celestial Sphere
Cambridge University Press, 2006, ISBN: 0-521-67123-X, $40
This introduction to the night sky is for amateur astronomers who desire a deeper understanding of the principles and observations of naked-eye astronomy. It covers topics such as terrestrial and astronomical coordinate systems, stars and constellations, the relative motions of the sky, sun, moon and earth leading to an understanding of the seasons, phases of the moon, and eclipses. Topics are discussed and compared for observers located in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Written in a conversational style, only addition and subtraction are needed to understand the basic principles and a more advanced mathematical treatment is available in the appendices. Each chapter contains a set of review questions and simple exercises to reinforce the reader's understanding of the material. The last chapter is a set of self-contained observation projects to get readers started with making observations about the concepts they have learned.
G.
Brent Dalrymple
Ancient
Earth, Ancient Skies: The Age of Earth and Its Cosmic Surroundings
Stanford
University Press, 2004, ISBN: 0-804-74933-7/0-804-74932-9, $17.95
(paper)/$45 (cloth)
Planet Earth and the other bodies of the Solar System are 4.5 billion years old. They reside in a galaxy (the Milky Way Galaxy) that is 12-14 billion years old, and are part of a universe that is 13-15 billion years old. In Ancient Earth, Ancient Skies, G. Brent Dalrymple, a geologist and widely recognized expert on the age of Earth, reviews the evidence that has led scientists to these conclusions and describes the methods by which this evidence has been gathered.
Edwin
A. Abbott, with an Introduction and Notes by Ian Stewart
The
Annotated Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
Perseus
Publishing, 2001, ISBN: 0-7382-0541-9, $30
Originally published in 1884 and never out-of-print since, its a work of scientific fantasy populated by polygons who live in the two-dimensional universe of the Euclidean plane. But beneath the surface, its also a biting satire of Victorian values. This annotated edition by Ian Stewart, Professor of Mathematics at the University of Warwick and author of Flatterland, explains many Victorian references and weaves in little known biographical information about Abbott and his intellectual circle and traces the scientific evolution of geometric forms and dimensions.
Geoffrey
Burbidge, Allan Sandage and Frank Shu, Eds.
Annual
Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Volume 40
Annual Reviews, 2002, ISBN: 0-8243-0940-5, $77 (print and online)
A Generalist Looks Back, Edwin E. Salpeter; Ultra-Compact HII Regions and Massive Star Formation, Ed Churchwell; Kuiper Belt Objects: Relics from the Accretion Disk of the Sun, Jane X. Luu, David Jewitt; Theory of Giant Planets, William B. Hubbard, Adam Burrows, Jonathan I. Lunine; Modified Newtonian Dynamics as an Alternative to Dark Matter, R. Sanders, Stacy McGaugh; Stellar Radio Astronomy: Probing Stellar Atmospheres from Protostars to Giants, Manuel Güdel; Cosmic Microwave Background Anisotropies, Wayne Hu, Scott Dodelson; Cluster Magnetic Fields, Greg B. Taylor, Chris Carilli; Theories of Gamma-Ray Bursts, P. Mészáros; Radio Emission from Supernovae and Gamma-Ray Bursters, Kurt W. Weiler, Nino Panagia, Marcos J. Montes, Richard A. Sramek, Schuyler D. Van Dyk; Cosmology with the Sunyaev-Zeldovich Effect, John E. Carlstrom, Gilbert P. Holder, Erik D. Reese; The New Galaxy: Signatures of Its Formation, Ken Freeman, Joss Bland-Hawthorn; The Evolution of X-ray Clusters of Galaxies, Piero Rosati, Stefano Borgani, Colin Norman; The Hydrodynamic Shaping of Planetary Nebulae, B.Balick, A. Frank; Lyman Break Galaxies, Mauro Giavalisco; The Origin of Binary Stars, Joel E. Tohline
Burbidge,
Blandford & Sandage, eds.
Annual
Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Volume 41
Annual Reviews, 2003, ISBN: 0-8243-0941-3, various pricing for individuals
and institutions (see website http://www.annualreviews.org)
Newest addition to this series. Includes: Massive Stars in the Local Group, Interstellar Dust Grains, Cool White Dwarfs, The Internal Rotation of the Sun, and more. Preceded by Hans Bethe's personal essay, "My Life in Astrophysics."
Geoffrey
Burbidge, Roger Blandford & Allan Sandage, eds.
Annual
Review of Astronomy & Astrophysics, Volume 42
Annual
Reviews, 2004, ISBN: 0-8243-0942-1, $84 print & online
Planned
at a meeting in May 2002, the volume's 16 articles include:
Anriaan Blaaw: My Cruise Through the World of Astronomy
Volker Bromm & Richard B. Larson: The First Stars
Robin N. Canup: Dynamics of Lunar Formation
B. Zuckerman & Inseok Song: Young Stars Near the Sun
and
more.
Roger
Blandford, et al., eds.
Annual
Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Volume 43
Annual Reviews, 2005, ISBN: 0-8243-0943-X, print and online
$86
Begins with Riccardo Giacconni's "An Education in Astronomy" and includes contributions by Chris Chyba, Brian Marsden, Michael Besssell, Allan Sandage and others too numerous to list. Complete table of contents may be found on the annual Reviews website (annualreviews.org).
Roger
Blandford, et al., eds.
Annual
Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Volume 44
Annual Reviews, 2005, ISBN: 0-8243-0943-X, print and online
$86
Begins with Riccardo Giacconni's "An Education in Astronomy" and includes contributions by Chris Chyba, Brian Marsden, Michael Besssell, Allan Sandage and others too numerous to list. Complete table of contents may be found on the annual Reviews website (annualreviews.org).
Jeanloz,
R, Albee, A., and Burke, K., Eds.
Annual
Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Volume 29, 2001
Annual
Reviews, 2001, ISBN: 0-8243-2029-8, $75
From the Preface: "Like much of the discipline of Earth and planetary science, a large fraction of the present volume of this Annual Review is about interactions between the fluid and solid Earth. These extend from the atmosphere to the inner core and can involve physical, chemical, or biological processes, the latter including consequences of and impact upon human activities."
Raymond
Jeanloz (Editor)
Annual
Review of Earth and Planetary Science
Vol. 30, May 2002
Annual
Reviews, 2002, ISBN: 0824320301, $165
Some of the most widely read papers of this yearòÀÙs Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Science include "Dating the Time and Origin of Major Clades: Molecular Clocks and the Fossil Record," by Andrew B. Smith and Kevin J. Peterson; "Prelude to the Cambrian Explosion," by James W. Valentine; "Volcanoes, Fluids and Life At Mid-Ocean Ridge Spreading Centers," by Deborah S. Kelley, John A. Baross, and John R. Delaney; "Mantle Mixing: The Generation, Preservation, and Destruction of Chemical Heterogeneity," by Peter E. van Keken, Erik H. Hauri and Chris J. Ballentin; "Petrology of Subducted Slabs," by Stefano Poli and Max W. Schmidt; "Earthquake Prediction: State-of-the-Art and Emerging Possibilities," by Vladimir Keilis-Borok; "Fossil Plants As Indicators of the Phanerozoic Global Carbon Cycle," by D.J. Beerling and D.L. Royer; "Pluto and Charon: Formation, Seasons, Composition," by Michael E. Brown; and "Implications of Extrasolar Planets For Understanding Planet Formation," by Peter Bodenheimer and D.N.C. Lin. The Annual Reviews publications are and have been among the most highly cited in scientific literature.
Raymond
Jeanloz, Ardene Albee & Kevin Burke, Eds.
Annual
Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Volume 31
Annual Review, 2003, ISBN: 0-8243-2031-X, $80.00 (print and on-line)
From the Preface—With publication of the current volume, we begin the fourth decade of Annual Reviews spanning the Earth and Planetary Sciences. Over this time period, the science has evolved no less because of the technical advances and discoveries of our discipline as in response to society and politics. G. J. Wasserburg's prefatory chapter captures the flavor of a unique era in the mid- to late-twentieth century, during which our field made huge strides in technical ability and consequent scientific insights....Overall, the broad emphasis on fluid-as well as solid-Earth, and on combined planetary, geological, and biological perspectives, characterizes the state of research in our field at the start of the twenty-first century.
Raymond
Jeanloz, et al., eds.
Annual
Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Volume 32
Annual Reviews, ISBN: 0-8243-2032-8, $84 (print and online)
From the Preface: The Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences covers a broad range of disciplines, from studies of the "solid" and fluid Earth to research on the origin and evolution of life and of planetary systems. Each chapter highlights an important development within these fields, and is intended to stand on its own. There is never enough space to cover more than a fraction of the significant advances, however, and little opportunity to devote several articles to a given theme.
Nevertheless, cross-disciplinary collaborations have recently emerged and prompted major breakthroughs from several different perspectives. In covering these developments among various subfields of Earth and planetary sciences, we find a strong clustering around a few themes in the present volume.
See http://www.annualreviews.org for complete chapter listing and abstracts.
Raymond
Jeanloz, et al., eds.
Annual
Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Volume 34
Annual Reviews, ISBN: 0-8243-2034-4, $85 (print and online/individuals)
From the Preface:
Perhaps the most noticeable feature of this volume is its format. Pages are laid out differently from before and figures are in a new style, with more use of color and simplified formats. In addition, articles can now have several embedded features...(and) we are seeing more use of supplementary material such as videos, which is well matched to the fact that readers are increasingly accessing the series via the Internet… Planetary topics start with coverage of "What Is a Planet?" (Basri & Brown). At the small scale, asteroids are being increasingly studied as planetary objects; Richardson & Walsh offer some possible reasons why.
See http://www.annualreviews.org for complete chapter listings and abstracts.
Raymond
Jeanloz, et al., eds.
Annual
Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Volume 35
Annual Reviews, 2007, ISBN: 978-0-8243-2035-5, $85 print and online
From the Preface:
From climate change and geological aspects of public health to the application of quantum mechanics in geochemistry or the characterization of pre-Solar System minerals in meteorites, the range of topics is broader than ever...the topics of each volume now span well beyond the solid-Earth and planetary disciplines that previously dominated the series, and include articles on subjects of immediate societal relevance...turning to planetary science, Edward R. D. Scott reviews the amazing detail now available from meteorites on the timing of early-Solar Sy